Cosham's new Retro Gaming centre proves a smash-hit with punters

GAMERS of all ages have given a new gaming centre the seal of approval after flocking in their dozens to mark the site’s opening weekend.
Ben Snook, with the help of his mum Jo Barrett, will be opening a gaming centre in Cosham high street, Portsmouth

Pictured: Ben Snook and his mum Jo Barrett at Retro Gameplay, Cosham, Portsmouth on Wednesday 26 January 2022

Picture: Habibur RahmanBen Snook, with the help of his mum Jo Barrett, will be opening a gaming centre in Cosham high street, Portsmouth

Pictured: Ben Snook and his mum Jo Barrett at Retro Gameplay, Cosham, Portsmouth on Wednesday 26 January 2022

Picture: Habibur Rahman
Ben Snook, with the help of his mum Jo Barrett, will be opening a gaming centre in Cosham high street, Portsmouth Pictured: Ben Snook and his mum Jo Barrett at Retro Gameplay, Cosham, Portsmouth on Wednesday 26 January 2022 Picture: Habibur Rahman

After months of preparation, Retro Gaming, in Cosham High Street, finally opened its doors to customers on Saturday.

The hub is the brainchild of autistic gamer Ben Snook, 27, from Cosham – who used his inheritance from his granddad to turn his life-long dream into reality.

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The venture offers customers a chance to delve into a range of video games and classic board games.

William McClenaghan, 14, was playing Jenga and Connect4 with his pals Ben Mills, Max Dixon and Liam Jay, all 13.William McClenaghan, 14, was playing Jenga and Connect4 with his pals Ben Mills, Max Dixon and Liam Jay, all 13.
William McClenaghan, 14, was playing Jenga and Connect4 with his pals Ben Mills, Max Dixon and Liam Jay, all 13.

Ben’s mum Jo Barrett, who helps her son run the site, was blown away by how many people came to Retro Gaming’s opening day.

‘This has been amazing, we have had so much support from the local community,’ she said. ’People are really pleased that we’ve opened a venue like this in Cosham. They’re really excited.

‘We’ve had families in and people playing board games with their kids, just really enjoying themselves.

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‘It’s been like a dream come true. It really couldn’t have gone any better.’

Ben said he was delighted with how things had gone, although added: ‘It’s been alright. We’ve had a few teething problems today - one of the remotes went missing so we couldn’t get one of the TVs on and one of the systems decided to pack in. But it’s gone pretty well.’

The site has been a smash-hit with punters, too.

William McClenaghan, 14, was playing Jenga and Connect4 with his pals Ben Mills, Max Dixon and Liam Jay, all 13.

William said: ‘It’s really nice here. It’s a lot easier playing games in real life.

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‘This is definitely something we have missed with all the recent lockdowns.’

Ben also enjoyed the experience and added: ‘I’ve loved it. I really like the board games a lot.’

Liam said the new gaming hub was a great addition to Cosham and said: ‘It just brings you back to when you couldn’t play video games online. It’s nice to be able to play with your mates.’

While Max added: ‘There is more variety here. There are loads of older, retro games which are interesting.’

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As well as a range of board game classics, customers can also sink their teeth into everything from Atari game consoles to PlayStation, Sega Mega Drive, Wii, Nintendo 64 and Xbox.

To visit it costs £5 for a single gamer session during the week, and £7 on the weekend, with discounts for groups and families.

Retro Gaming is open Tuesday to Sunday, from 2pm to 8pm on weekdays, 11am to 8pm on Saturday and 11am to 5pm on Sunday.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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